Labels generally contain print in the form of various combinations of text and graphics. The text and graphics on a label generally provide information about the item, package, or container upon which the label is placed. Labels can carry information, such as instructions for use, ingredient lists, specific information regarding pharmaceutical products (e.g., information about safety warnings, contra-indications, dosage, dosage frequency, and drug interactions), promotional information, or a variety of other types of information. The text and graphics often need to be small and densely printed so that all the required or desired information can be included on the label. It is not uncommon for information on a label to be difficult to read without optical aids such as eyeglasses or magnifying glasses. Furthermore, small packages require small labels, which limit the size of print that can be placed on the label.
As they age, people generally experience increased difficulty in reading small print or reading print in dim lighting. Although optical aids such as eyeglasses and other types of magnifying glasses are available and can compensate for deficiencies in sight, they are easily misplaced, lost, broken, or are often not conveniently at hand when needed. While the difficulties of reading small print is prevalent on labels and other packaging components for many industries, it is especially problematic for medicines, which are often packaged in small containers that require substantial amounts of information including: instructions for use, warnings, contraindications, and ingredient lists. In addition, the disproportionate use of medications by elderly consumers, and other consumers with impaired vision, exacerbates the problem.
The difficulty in reading the small print on labels and other packaging components is well recognized and has led practitioners in the art to develop various types of devices to aid the consumer. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,961,108 describes a magnifier that is incorporated into a bottle cap, such that when the cap is removed it can be used to magnify the print on the label affixed to the bottle. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,193,032 and 7,021,489 describe a housing constructed of a magnifying material and adapted to receive a container having a label affixed thereto. The housing magnifies the text on the label of the container once the container is placed in the housing. U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,279 describes a curved convex lens in the shape of a circular open ring or oval that can be attached to a vial, bottle, round container, or other curved objects and moved up and down to magnify text below the attachment point. U.S. Pat. No. 5,204,775 describes a single layer detachable magnifying device designed to be removed from the container on which it is affixed to aid the consumer in reading a label affixed to the container. While the prior art teaches various ways to adapt conventional magnifying lens technology into more convenient optical aids for reading small print, the devices are cumbersome to use, expensive to manufacture, or difficult to implement on a large scale.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,284,363 and 6,941,689 describe multilayered labels having layers that can be partially separated and re-adhered multiple times, while U.S. Pat. No. 5,342,093 describes a wrap-around label with a designated portion that can be peeled back from the surface to expose the top surface of an underlying layer. None of these patents addresses the problem of magnifying small print on labels.
Thus, there remains a very significant and growing need for a simple, inexpensive, and widely applicable magnifier system that can be readily associated with any form of packaging to provide an optical aid for reading indicia printed on an article or article packaging.